The Star's Limit: A Fluke of Gold
by Loki-Ryuu
Summary: Lucy Heartfilia is an aspiring novelist who sets her goals on writing a romance story. Only problem is she has zero to nothing experience, that's when Natsu steps in as her best friend to fake date her! It's going great until Loke jumps in and shows her just the passion she's been missing.
1. Chapter 1

She stared at the blank page, and menacingly it stared back. She huffed, and arose from her desk chair, hoping a fleet of inspiration would suddenly attack her before she had to leave her apartment. No such luck. Lucy's writing had been on hold as of late, she knew she wanted to write, however her hands seemed still over the keyboard. Tapping on one letter key, thinking of even just one word to start a sentence.

It was her dream to be a writer.

"Nothing to write about." She groaned, banging her head down on her crossed arms in front of her.

"Boof!" Raising her head, she smiled at the familiar face of Plue, a small white dog she had acquired not long before leasing out this place.

"Ah, 'Boof', interesting concept, I'll definitely write that down!" Lucy laughed as she kneeled on the floor in front of the shivering animal, it jumped up on her immediately as it lapped happily away at her cheeks. "Hold on, Plue." She said, helping position the dog down as her phone buzzed in her pocket.

" _Cana's already been at the bar for two hours. She's drunk already."_

"I have to go early tonight, Plue. I'll be home soon!" She called out to her pet fondly as she grabbed out for a small handbag which hung by the front door.

The local pub wasn't at all that far away, it was even on the route her and Plue went for daily walks, the staff very much enjoyed seeing the small animal when the bar was mostly empty. It didn't take long for Lucy's quickened footsteps to reach her destination, and she very briskly pushed open Fairy Tail's doors.

It wasn't hard to spot her friends. Cana once worked part-time here at the pub, the staff were all friendly with her, and none dared tell her off for drinking too much. Beside the drunken shape of Cana was a tall red-head. Lucy was surprised Cana was arguing with Erza at all.

"Cana! We agreed 8pm, you can't arrive just before 6pm and start drinking alone!" Erza's voice was that of a champion; demanding respect from everyone around her. Yet, Cana had now just seen Lucy approaching and broken out into a grin.

"Lucy!" She cheered, gripping onto her arm and pulling the petite, blonde woman in for an embrace. "Hah! Erza is now outnumbered!" The drunk antiques of her friend were usually not this bad, in fact Cana held her liquor better than anyone, it surprised Lucy to see her like this. Looking up at Erza, the level-headed woman nodded to a guy at the other end of the bar. Lucy had never seen him before.

His shirt was gone and he was snickering with mates as he continued to drink, occasionally glancing over to the commotion Lucy was stuck in. The bartender strode over and gave them a glass of water to help their friend out, as Lucy saw Erza grab it and chuck the cold liquid at Cana, she yelped out.

"Erza! It was for her to drink and sober up!" Lucy scolded out, Erza genuinely looked apologetic as she mouthed out an 'oh'. Luckily, Mirajane simple chuckled lightly at the gesture and handed Lucy another glass, which Cana started sipping away at, though she didn't let her eyes leave Erza's as she refused to stop glaring at her.

They watched Cana finish the water and brought her into a booth, Lucy watched her intently as Erza explained Cana had lost a drinking competition. In response, the woman seemed to growl, any locals in this bar knew Cana could have drank pure ethanol and stomached it: the woman didn't lose. Until now, of course.

"I hate him." She sneered out, tying her slightly wet hair up into a ponytail as she kept looking over to the man. Lucy had never been one to drink, Cana always invited her out, but even then she would only have a few drinks, even then she still turned rosy.  
"Hey guys!" The girls looked over and saw short waves of blue hair bounce over.

"Levy!" Lucy chimed at her. The girl was even shorter than Lucy was, but she fit right in among the tough personas of Cana and Erza, she definitely was stronger than she looked.

"Classic Cana." Levy smiled, watching Cana look over to her and give a toothy grin right back at her. "So, what happened?"

"Cana lost a drinking match and is probably going to murder that guy." Lucy said, subtly pointing over to the man, who coincidentally had also tied up his own long, dark hair.

"I'm going to sleep with him." Cana smirked, winking at the guy, who seemed to finally splutter at one of his drinks. Levy raised an eyebrow over to Erza and Lucy who seemed shocked by this statement.

"Please do not sleep with Bacchus Groth." Erza said, Cana ignored her as she strode proudly over to the man who seemed like he was just waiting on her. The girls watched as Cana pushed one of his friends out of their chair to sit next to him, Bacchus was laughing at the display. All notions of sex seemed to disappear as within minutes they were yelling and arguing with each other.

"You know him, Erza?" Lucy asked, and Erza nodded.

"He's a dick. Always gets drunk and fights people." She concluded, not adding anymore onto that sentence.

"Cana's very confident, isn't she?" Lucy said aloud, both her friends looked confused by that statement. Lucy groaned as now she had to explain. "I want to finally start writing my novel." The girls looked thrilled for her as Levy clapped her hands together, filled with excitement and Erza smiled kindly at her.

"I can't wait to read it!" Levy and Lucy became close instantly, once they found out they shared a common interest in books, their bond was inseparable. Lucy, however was the writer and Levy, the avid reader.

"And that's the problem, I want to write something personal." Lucy started, chewing absently at a straw in her drink.

"Does that mean you're going to write about us?" A slight sweep of pink blushed danced across Erza's cheeks. Though proud and as strong as she was, Erza never was one to be in the spotlight, it made Lucy chuckle to see the friend she thought of as a warrior so easily flushed.

"Well, I want to write a romance novel, talk about personal feelings, true emotion and love." Lucy had been looking down, when she glanced back up at the pair, Levy smiled and winked at her.

"So, it is about us then?" Lucy rolled her eyes and laughed with them.

"You wish, I wouldn't be able to choose between you." She even stuck her tongue out to add cheekiness.

"Who is it about then, Lucy?" They waited whilst Lucy was sat fiddling with her thumbs, feeling the heat all rush to her face. She silently cursed her body, wishing it didn't have to be obvious and make her face red.

"That's where I'm struggling." She confessed, looking away again as the other girls looked to one another. Erza seemed to not understand, Levy motioned a gesture which Lucy had missed and Erza nodded, seeming to understand the issue now.

"Lucy, if a guy hasn't been _the best_ in bed, you don't have to put that in." Levy said sympathetically.

"What!" Lucy looked back at them in shock. "It's not _just_ the sex stuff! It's…I've never had a proper boyfriend before!" She called out, smacking Levy playfully over the head for commenting about her sex, or lack of. "I want this novel to just feel real, but how can I do that if I don't even know what feelings are like." She said, mumbling at the end as she let her head rest between her hands, slightly ashamed of her situation.

"Maybe Cana can help you out?" Levy piped out, looking up at her, Levy nodded back towards where Cana had started fighting with Bacchus and was surprised the pair were now in a hefty make-out session. The group started giggling between themselves and Lucy felt her embarrassment start to fade away. She was lucky to have such understanding friends.

"I don't know how she does it." Erza commented.

"I like that about Cana, when she wants something, she goes for it, she doesn't ask permission." Lucy had to agree, out of them Cana was the one who seemed the luckiest when it came to affairs of the heart. Though, Lucy seemed to peg part of that on having such an intimidating father figure. Cana loved to rebel against his desire to keep every man away from her.

Looking over at Levy, she wondered why her friend was single. She had many admirers after all. Levy had once told her it's worth waiting for someone who challenges her. Erza on the other hand was a mystery. It seemed fitting Lucy saw her somewhat like a rose. Beautiful, of course, but bearing thorns which were dangerously sharp and never let anyone close. Lucy had once found out through Cana that Erza has only had one boyfriend in the whole time she's known her, she didn't know what had happened, but apparently the boy made her feel something so real she knew it wasn't worth trying to pretend with someone else. Though strong on her own, it made sense to Lucy a sword deserved a shield.

"We know plenty of guys, we'll find you someone Lucy!" Lucy hoped that didn't mean joining a dating website. "What about Gray? I know he's been distant, but you guys get along."

Lucy pondered and thought about the cool character that he was, she knew he had a deeper side, but he was so emotionless to the naked eye. She laughed as she thought about the idea of going out with Gray. Erza and Levy looked at her, expecting an answer.

"Natsu would murder me if he knew I went out with Gray! You know they don't get along!" She had to wipe a slight tear forming in her right eye from laughter. As she blinked and adjusted her sight, she saw the girls looking at each other, an idea forming between them.

"Natsu, hmm." Levy started, her index finger and thumb rubbing across her chin as she put the idea out there. Lucy glared at her, but Erza was already in on the idea as well.

"You have been best friends forever." Erza nodded to herself.

"Subtle." Lucy commented, unamused. "I mean, when I first met him? Yeah, I thought he liked me. He's so hot-tempered and fiery." She pouted, remembering how Natsu was the first person she had met in Magnolia, he was the reason she had even met the group in front of her. Though why he still attained pink hair was a mystery to her. (" _It's washed out salmon, Lucy!"_ )

When Lucy thought about Natsu, she figured he was cute in how people also found a monkey cute, but monkeys can be annoying and loud.

"Natsu is important to me, I don't want to spoil our friendship."

"If you guys fake dated, then you get to experience what a boyfriend is like, but you guys are still just friends." Erza said, even Levy seemed to agree with her.

"I don't want to lead him on…" The thought was slightly disturbing to Lucy of having to tell her friend she wanted to date but didn't actually want to invest feelings in him.

"Be honest with him Lucy." Levy smiled at her sincerely. "You guys can figure something out." Lucy didn't think it would work, but she appreciated the idea. In fact, she was now wondering just how her and Natsu would work together in a romantic sense.

"As long as he doesn't try take me fire-swallowing for our first date!" They laughed about the notion for a few more minutes before Erza rose from the table and announced she was going to rescue Cana and take her home. Levy stood up with Lucy and told her she would walk home with her. As Lucy and Levy started to leave, they waved to Erza who was dragging Cana from having a one-night stand with someone who also smelled like a distillery.

Lucy and Levy parted waves when the streets broke off into a crossroads where they would go down different paths. Streetlights paved the wave all along the footpath. She was glad for the added light in contrast to the dark nights of Fiore.

Just before she reached her apartment, she spotted a silver scarf, blowing gently in the slight breeze. The material of the scarf shone like scales yet was soft as cotton. It was just as big of a mystery as the man who wore it. She already knew he was planning on coming over, his cat positioned on his shoulders like it belonged with him.

"Hey Natsu!" She called out, Natsu was slightly taken aback that Lucy had been out. He shrugged of any thoughts and waited for Lucy to come up to him as they walked together to her apartment. "Staying at mine tonight?" He nodded.

"I always sleep better on your couch than my bed for some reason." Lucy was used to their sleepovers. Recently, Natsu's father had passed, she never pestered him to talk about it, Natsu coming over was his way of asking for company. "Why were you not at home at this time?"

"Me and the girls were talking about my up-coming bestselling novel!" He smiled, nodding as he listened to her.

"What's it about?"

She blushed, fumbling for words.

"Oh, you know. Classic zero-boyfriends Lucy is writing a romance novel, pretty ironic, huh?" She shrugged, how was she supposed to even talk about this. "Hey, why don't me and you go to a restaurant, hold hands, sit under a tree so I know how to write about it?" She laughed, attempting to make this less awkward but she found Natsu had stopped walking alongside her.

"Lucy, are you asking me on a date?"


	2. Chapter 2

Lucy had still welcomed Natsu into her home, hoping to try to explain the situation without any confusion left between the pair. Her home wasn't lavish, a secret lifestyle she had left hidden long behind her. She was quite content with the quaint and minimalistic look she had style…also because it was all she could afford.

Natsu's cat, Happy, had leaped down from his shoulders and strutted into Lucy's apartment as though it was his space as well. He jumped up on a familiar chair and already had cozied himself to fall asleep in seconds. Plue was more interest in Natsu than Happy anyway.

"Hey buddy!" Natsu greeted as he started petting the dog happily. Natsu had always loved Plue, he seemed so much more like a dog person, yet with Happy, their friendship just seemed right between them. Natsu had said he wouldn't want to get a dog that would disrupt Happy's lifestyle, he was way too compassionate about his cat's happiness than his own.

"I think he's missed you." Lucy smiled, letting the pair greet each other as she went to boil the kettle and start making them some drinks. Lucy had a rule: no coffee for Natsu. The fiery persona that he was, was simply too extravagant without caffeine, when they added caffeine into the mix, Natsu was a menace. He was ten times louder and feistier, and after one too many cases where he had drunken the cups of coffee, all of their friend group had joined together and cut him off.

When Lucy had made each of them a simple cup of tea, Natsu joined her in the kitchen, though Plue waddled behind him, eager to stay near them for company.

"So," Natsu began. Lucy started to panic as she had no idea how to remedy what must be going on through his mind, she didn't want him to think she'd been in love with him for years or something along those lines.

"I love our friendship, Natsu." Lucy started, she could even visibly see the raised stress in his shoulders drop as he smiled back at her. Natsu was extremely loyal to his friendship, especially Lucy. It was something Lucy admired about him, she never did feel alone around him.

"I love being your friend too Luce." She couldn't help chuckle lightly, it seemed they were honestly worrying over nothing.

"Come on, tell me about your novel and your plan." She felt more confident now and the pair sat down at the kitchen table as Lucy placed her drink down and watched Natsu gulp away. It was amazing how the hot heat of the drink wasn't burning away at his tongue. Either that or he simply ignored the pain. She would wait for it to cool down, blowing away the steam every few seconds.

"You know my history, I didn't get to grow up and get crushes." She started and Natsu nodded, he was the only one who knew the truth about the Heartfilia name he bore.

"Yeah, it must have been tough, not having a real childhood and getting to be a rebellious teen." She waved her hand at him, as though ushering away the slight sadness and pity there was lingering in his tone.

"Being around you and Gray means I get to experience a lot of rebellion." He grinned at that, Natsu sure knew how to take the group on an adventure. And by adventure, more than half of those trips would get them into trouble, more so if they got caught.

"Childhood crushes are a lot overrated anyway." Lucy hummed as she was unaware of Natsu's childhood. He had always said it was uneventful. He moved to Magnolia when he was young, met Gray and Erza in school and the rest was history. "You've got extreme emotions and hormones and it's all over the top."

"You're extreme and hormonal now too Natsu." He scoffed at her and rolled his eyes, though didn't deny it. "Mira has a little sister, Lisanna and she was the first person I ever had a crush on." What Natsu was saying intrigued Lucy, it was nice to see a softer side of Natsu, he only really showed it when there was something important happening, it was nice to see it casually.

"I thought it was only the two Strauss siblings?" Natsu barely acknowledged this, simply nodded to show he understood.

"Lisanna got ill," Lucy noticed a dark tone surround Natsu, it was apparent by ill he didn't mean just a normal common cold "it was so bad, we nearly lost her."

"Natsu…"

"They moved her outside of Fiore, a place called Edolas, it had better healthcare, so she's still up there so they can still administer constant tests and monitoring. It's good, she's doing well, I think." He seemed unsure himself.

"You haven't tried getting in contact?"

"Oh, I used to, she was up with her brother, he moved up there with her and they have their uncle and aunt as well. Mira keeps in contact, I would ask about her from Mira over the years and eventually one day she told me Lisanna was seeing someone." He seemed to hesitate in finishing his story. "Just seemed a bit pointless keeping a childhood crush alive."

"She was more than that, she was your friend." Natsu and Lucy shared an intimate smile and Lucy got up from her chair to give her friend a hug, it was clear he needed it.

"What about you, first awkward crush?" Natsu pressed, though he was careful not to press too hard as he knew Lucy's father had been strict and she never really got to experience social events outside of her estate.

"The year my mum died." Lucy could see Natsu was going to tell her she didn't have to continue but he stopped him by supporting a proud smile. "My dad held a huge Christmas party, I think neither of us really wanted to be alone. A boy gave me a flower when I was ten and I started crying because I associated flowers with funerals." Natsu gave a sympathetic chuckle to the account, thinking of poor Lucy crying in front of her first admirer, albeit sad, was slightly amusing.

"And this guy was your crush?" Natsu cheered on for her to continue.

"Yeah, I barely remember him or the night, I just remember my dad being mad and throwing the flower away."

"Yeesh."

"Yeesh indeed." Lucy lifted up her mug and Natsu repeated the action as they clicked their cups together, being careful not to spill any liquid remaining. "To being unlucky in love."

"I had a crush on you." Natsu spilled and Lucy felt herself slightly choke on the tea she had begun to drink. "Ah sorry! Wow, that insulting huh?" Lucy swatted away at him and forcefully swallowed the liquid down her throat, coughing a little.

"When?" He asked, curious to when this was.

"Um, when my dad died." Lucy felt herself relive those painful memories. "You were the only one who understood what it felt like. I just looked at you as though you were beyond incredible." Lucy smiled, it was rare for someone to compliment her past her looks on the outside.

"Do you still-?" The question left hanging in the air and part of her was left disappointed when Natsu started shaking his head.

"I guess, it was just clear for me that you were brilliant because you were my best friend." They had known each other for a few years now, not once had Lucy ever regretted being best friends, except when she first met him.

"When we first met, I had a little crush on you." Natsu's eyes widened, clearly not expecting that.

"Really? I had no idea!" He said in surprise, a little too loud as even Happy meowed in annoyance as the sound had woken him up.

"You were this guy who just showed up and took me in and gave me a life here." She smiled fondly at him. "You didn't care about my name, you liked hanging out with me because I was me." He leant back in his chair, please to receive some compliments in return. "Over time, there just wan't any sexual or romantic thoughts there and I realised I just cared about you so much for a different reason."

"'Cuse I was your bestie?" He raised his eyebrows suggestively and Lucy scoffed, but had to agree.

"Yes, because you're my bestie." The two of them laughed together and Natsu slowed down the laughter to confess another thing.

"Lucy, if helping you write a best-selling novel means all I gotta do is take you to a dinner a few times, I'll do it." Lucy was thankful for Natsu, she doubted anyone could have been as selfless as him. "Besides, I once also had a crush on Erza, so you're definitely a lot better than going down that road again." He knew it was coming but hearing the thundering laughter was Lucy was embarrassing. Erza was incredibly strong and easily defeated him in any fight or competition they had, it was obvious he had a little crush on her. He soon realised he was more crushing on her power than her herself.

"Natsu, that's something." She said, her hand raised covering her mouth which was still slightly laughing at the idea of a younger Natsu fancying the red-headed Amazon that was Erza Scarlet.

"Let's move on from that, please." He was begging, and Lucy regretfully agreed, only to help her novel.

"So, I had an idea, the main character had always been a sceptic of love and so this guy says he can make her fall in love with him."

"And this is where I come in?"

"Natsu, I have absolutely no idea what people do on dates, what they talk about, what they feel. I need the experience!" She practical screamed, so frustrated by her lack of knowledge. She had only managed to escape her father's clutches when she was 18, and by law could live away from him. It had been years since then, but she never did look back, even when the rent bills piled in and the work was hard.

"All right, I'll do it, we'll try this dating thing, and when you inevitably fall in love with me, I'll marry you for your money." Natsu laughed and Lucy joined in, though she pounced on him and began swatting at his spikey pink hair. He yelped as he fell back, and Lucy came toppling down onto him and wasn't stopping her swatting actions anytime soon. He grabbed at her arms and attempted to get on top, but Lucy was surprisingly persistent. "Luce! We should at least have dinner before we get this intimate!" He laughed out as he watched her skin turn a peculiar shade of red and she let herself fall to the side, off of him.

"You raise a good point." She pondered, and he made out an audible 'hmm?' sound. "We should establish some rules and boundaries whilst we're doing this."

"A rulebook, nice." He said sarcastically, and he watched as he friend bounced up from the floor and ran to her room to grab a notebook and a pen.

"Firstly, no sex." Lucy didn't have to look at Natsu, she knew he would have a bewildered expression on his face.

"Yeah…ew…sex." Lucy scowled at him as she looked back at him and let herself fall on the couch to begin writing in her notebook on the sofa.

"You know I'm waiting." Natsu nodded, of course best friend meant no secrets, Natsu knew no man had touched her before. He personally didn't think it had anything to do with her wanting to wait, he thought she was just scared. Natsu sat up on the floor and watched her scribble down a few lines. Lucy was timid to most people, being raised to act a certain way had affected just how much she presented her true self. Natsu loved when Lucy shot back remarks at him, he loved their playful nature they had with each other. He also knew the abuse her father had forged into her heart, he respected her internal desire to never let another man hurt her, and for Lucy part of that was sex, something so intimate, she was keeping for herself.

"I know. I was just joking." He got up and lay on the sofa, his legs putting themselves over Lucy's lap, they had done this many times, it was the comfort of their friendship.

"Do you have any rules?" She politely asked him, after all he was half of this relationship. It was only right to go in 50/50.

"Can we not tell people it's fake?" Natsu asked, and Lucy blinked, slightly confused.

"I think if we tell people it's fake, they'll think someone will get feelings and get hurt and try stop it. But, they don't know us." He explained, and Lucy nodded, though this wasn't as important to her, if Natsu didn't want to appear as though they were using each other in some way, she would write the rule down.

"I'd like handholding and hugs, cuddles for cold nights of course." Lucy said, though he knew she was also asking for permission.

"No kissing?" He asked, to him that seemed the most obvious aspect of a relationship. There was something extremely intimate about using your lips to convey feelings which couldn't be said.

"On the cheek and hand is acceptable." Lucy started writing and also added, "And we go even on any bills for dates." Now, Natsu lifted his foot to her face, causing her to squirm to get away from his touch.

"Luce! You're my date! I have to treat you!" He yelled. Lucy knew Natsu would protest, hence why she got to the point before he did and insisted he treat her every step of the way.

"Non-negotiable." He stated firmly, clicking the top of her pen for confirmation. Natsu sat up pand leaned in.

"Is kissing negotiable?" He watched the blush return to her cheeks, Lucy was easy to tease.

"Maybe." She said, clicking the pen again and writing it down. She looked over to him, swallowing a lump in her throat. He looked slightly lost, much like herself. It was odd discussing this.

"Tomorrow I'll take you to dinner." Now Lucy's interest was focused back on Natsu, she was genuinely excited, not only for her novel, but to have some fun.

"As long as you're fine with me paying half." He huffed, looking like he did have something to say, but he didn't voice it. "And you're sleeping on the couch, don't think you're welcome in my bed just because we're going out! The last thing Lucy heard was Natsu's laughter as she slinked back into her room to sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

"Argh!" Came the scream of Lucy the next morning. Natsu had politely said good morning and headed back home, Happy towing behind him, letting Lucy give his head a rub before he scurried off after his owner. That was always how the pair had been, Natsu had insisted Happy had never needed a leash, that the animal was his friend and knew where he wanted to go.

That left Lucy in the predicament of deciding what to wear to a fake-first-date. She had sent a message to Erza and Levy about how Natsu had agreed to the situation. Mostly, she was thrilled, though she was also slightly terrified, their crazy idea was now becoming a reality. Levy had eagerly decided to come over and investigate the room.

"You sure he didn't stay in your bed?" She interrogated, Lucy could easily imagine her with a magnifying glass in her hand. She laughed off the thought and shook her head.

"Positive. He was couch boy once again." Levy seemed to bite her cheek, seemingly wanting more gossip than just 'he slept on the couch'.

"We're going to a diner in Hargeon, I haven't been there in ages." Lucy commented, filtering through her wardrobe like a crazy woman, had her outfits all looked so wrong before? "What about this coral top?"

"Coral?" Levy screeched and ripped the tiny top out of Lucy's hands. "You are not wearing Coral!" Levy searched through the items and seemed to whistle along, as though this was an average job for her.

"I thought it was nice…" Lucy mumbled to herself, though Levy heard it she chose to ignore it as much as she loved her friend, Levy was keeping a sane head and not overstressing like she was.

"Here." Levi said, throwing a black top to her. Lucy smiled at her friend, thankful for the help. It was a simple outfit, casual and comfortable, yet the top allowed for a slight amount of cleavage to show and the skirt she picked out was thankfully a midi, and not a mini.

"Okay, I do look cute." Lucy said, aware of her feminine figure and flaunting it proudly to her friend.

"Wear it later and go easy on the lipstick, don't want you smudging it at the end." She said, adding a wink at the end. Lucy got flustered and twiddled with her thumbs.

"He knows it's not like that." She started. "I made rules with him last night!" She held up the page proudly, showing the self-restraint she had.

"Kissing: maybe?" Levy asked suggestively.

"Ah! Well, later on! Not now!" Lucy explained, frantically trying to explain she wasn't certain they were going to kiss at all.

"You have a date to go to later, I'll stay for another hour and head off." Levy smiled, heading out of the bedroom with Lucy as the two girls sat down on the couch and discussed what would happen tonight. True to her word, Levy only stayed for a little while and soon left Lucy alone, besides Plue of course.

Later on in the day, Lucy had been trying her best to keep up with Levy's constant messages, Erza was a lot more relaxed about it. She got into her outfit and found herself applying just a small layer of makeup, no more than usual. Brows, check. Mascara, check. She looked over to the lipstick and grabbed it and decided to apply just a small layer, so if anything did happen, nothing would be horrendously smudged.

She found herself cursing at the very notion any kissing would happen tonight. She was very clear in that soft affection, such as a peck on the cheek was what was acceptable. However, she did remember she had thought over the idea of kissing. She looked at herself in the mirror and shook her head, this was Natsu! Why was she overthinking this?

"Natsu. You should have just settled for a diner in Magnolia, you should have known we'd have to get the train to Hargeon!" She scowled at him as his motion sickness was causing him to sway as they walked from the station to the town's streets.

"I wanted it to be special." He blubbed out, upset and sickly from the motion sickness he regrettably got. Lucy pet his head, much like she did Happy, and guided him towards the restaurant. Natsu's recovery came swift at the smell of food; the boy did like to eat. He even had given his cat a small round tummy as they both seemed to fit tremendous amounts of food in them.

"All right Romeo, let's get you some food before you start thinking back about the trip home." He looked up at her and seemed to revert back to his ghostly white state of illness at the mere notion of travelling again. Thankfully, a waiter came to them and set two menus in front of them.

"Welcome to Port's Diner, what can Juvia get you to drink?" Lucy looked at noticed the name badge read the same name as the name the waitress called, was talking in third person normal here?

"Just water, please." Lucy smiled, though looking back at Natsu, she added a lemonade for his upset stomach. As the waitress left, Lucy looked back at Natsu who was casually browsing through the menu. She reached into her purse and pulled out a small notepad, causing Natsu's eyes to look up.

"What's that?" He asked, curious by what she had.

"I googled top things to discuss on a date!" Lucy said, proud she had the intuitive to think ahead.

"What's the first thing it says?" Natsu snickered, apparently mocking her actions, she pouted in annoyance and flipped the cover page over.

"Nice weather we're having, isn't it?" She said, adding a pleasant smile, cursing as Natsu laughed at her face.

"Luce! It was freezing and windy yesterday!"

"And it's nice!" She bickered back, already regretting this choice, she felt proud she had at least tried to get the date scene right.

"C'mon, you know me, we can just have a normal conversation. Talk about our likes and hobbies, that kinda thing." Natsu added in, Lucy did admit that did seem a bit more relaxed than the conversation topics she had in her notepad. Sighing, she hid it back away into her purse and looked fondly back at her friend.

"I like writing." She started, and Natsu encouraged her to continue. "My mum wrote a journal of short stories and when I was a kid, I loved reading them. She inspired me to write, she always said I would tell the stories of the stars, the secrets they hid in their shine." She couldn't help it as her lips tipped upwards, her mother's passing had affected her greatly, but she loved her too much to silence her memory.

"That's beautiful, Luce." Natsu seemed to stop and actually have to think about what he enjoyed. "Gray." He growled out.

"Gray?" Lucy was perplexed, she wouldn't have thought saying he had fun with his rival was something important.

"No, that stupid cucumber is here!" He sneered, seemingly letting his body fall down into the chair in a pathetic effort to hide from Gray. Lucy allowed herself to turn her head and look, and sure enough, Gray Fullbuster had walked into the Port's Diner. He seemed more poised than Lucy was used to seeing him, normally he was always slouched and relaxed, barely wearing anything at Fairy Tail. Here he was on the other hand, dressed in a fine, white tailored coat, she had never seen him look so elegant.

He recognised Lucy and walked over, hand already raised when he spotted the grumpy Natsu.

"Hi Gray!" Lucy welcomed, and he rubbed the back of his head awkwardly when he realised he had left his hand in the air, not finishing the initial wave.

"Hey Lucy, what are you doing here with this moron?" He mocked as Natsu had an immediate aggressive response and seemed to awaken the fiery personality he was known for and raised his fist.

"We're on a date, squinty-eyes, not that a pervy popsicle like you would ever get asked on a date!" Lucy's eyes widened, she was used to their animosity, but she didn't think they would continue out in public, and that Natsu would do it even on a date. Their waitress chose then to rejoin them with her notepad in hand.

"I'm on a date too, you droopy-eyed hothead!" Gray seemed more agitated than usual as he grabbed onto the waitress's arm and brought her over to another table and brought out the chair for her to sit in. At least he was being courtly and mannered to the woman he just kidnapped away from her job. Looking back at Natsu she saw him reaching out, upset.

"She never took our orders!" Lucy had to stop herself from laughing, the pair of them were ridiculous, they fought over nothing and everything and their insults always seemed to resolve around fire and ice. She once heard the story started when Natsu somehow caught the guild ablaze and when Gray left a door open in the back, freezing the entire backrooms with snow and ice. They seemed to relentlessly mock each other over the past events.

"We can ask for another waitress soon." Lucy didn't see the rush, besides the girl Gray had grabbed was actually blushing and seemed to be swooning over the man who, literally, swept her off her feet. She felt she needed to give the guy a break and feel like he hadn't lost to Natsu.

"He's such an asshole." Natsu grumbled, sipping away at his lemonade he had managed to receive before they lost their waitress.

"Why do you fight all the time?" Lucy asked, in the heat of the moment, Lucy had always just rolled her eyes over the pair of them and had never really asked herself why they had such an intent rivalry for the other. She knew the insults were backed up from past atrocities they had managed to do to Fairy Tail, but what had actually sparked the fighting is where her interest lay.

"We just clash, the guy's like my polar opposite, he just gets on all my nerves. At once." Natsu did not look happy, talking about Gray was obviously a sore spot, Lucy noted.

"I get that." Lucy confessed.

"Some people just don't click." She agreed and found a new waitress for the pair. Natsu became much happier when the food arrived, Lucy barely had time to get a word from him as food was constantly being shoved into his mouth like a vacuum.

"Do you ever wonder where you'll be in the future?" Lucy asked, watching him wipe his mouth in a fast movement with a napkin.

"I think I'll probs' still be working at Dad's smithery. It's nice, people need something made or fixed, I can usually help. Plus if that ice mongrel ever shows up I can pierce him with the hot-rod!" The pair joked along, even after the food on their plate was long gone. Lucy noted just how easy conversation was with Natsu, he seemed to understand everything she said and would even add on comments.

She found herself looking at Natsu in a new light, it was odd to reminisce to when she hadn't known him like she does in the present. Back then, she saw him as a natural charmer, the way he spoke so passionately about everything he came across, it initially made her wish he spoke that way about her too.

Lucy was a writer by trade, it was why she found herself always being drawn to Natsu's eyes; dark like a coal. She knew not to be eluded by the dark eyes, they were lit with a powerful fire that sparked itself more-so out from his mouth than his eyes. For the handful of years in which Lucy had resided in Fiore, Natsu had pink hair. She once asked him if it was real and he seemed offended, yet he never did give her a clear answer. Once or twice, she did try pestering others about the authenticity of his hair's shade, but everyone just always said Natsu's always had pink hair for all his life, they'd never seen him even have a different colour growing out in his roots.

It was peculiar that she was looking at Natsu this way, admiring his charming features, he really was cute now that she was looking. She wondered if he was seeing a new side of her now that they were trying something new. Lucy knew she was a woman with curves, in all her years of knowing Natsu he had never once showed an interest, never once had she caught him staring, not like the others. It made her both respect him and worry, it was a complicated thing.

"Want to head back to Fairy Tail for a few pints?" Lucy asked, and watched as Natsu was already starting to grip onto the furniture, she would have to forcefully pull him away to get him back on that train. She stood up and waved to Gray, who was actually engaging with his stolen date. "Hey Gray, we're heading to Fairy Tail, want to join us?" Lucy was surprised that the waitress from earlier, Juvia, was glaring at her, she probably was annoyed she was stealing away her spontaneous date.

"Sure thing." He stood up, and grabbed Juvia's hand. "I figured you can hold my hand since I just grabbed you. You can pull away if you want." He said calmly, Lucy was envious even in this situation he was so chill.

"I want to hold it…" She was a lot more flushed now and looked at their joined hands in awe.

"Just a warning, Natsu will get sick on the train." Lucy tried to make it less awkward by forcing out a fake laugh but Juvia and Gray both just stared at her. "All right baby, let's go!" Gray widened his eyes, Lucy had meant the term in that he was being childish, she knew he thought she was being endearing, as they were on a date, she didn't define what she meant by the term.

Luckily for her, Gray apparently had an expertise in dragging people so getting Natsu on the train turned out a lot easier for Lucy. The blonde looked over to the over woman who was busy trying to fix her coat.

"How was your time with Gray, Juvia?" Lucy asked, she wanted to at least make the pale woman feel comfortable around Gray's friends if she was coming back to the pub with them.

"Gray is…amazing." She whispered, looking back at Gray, who was helping keep Natsu's head between his knees. "I'm a little stoic, but he seemed to break that down pretty quickly." She smiled, attempting to cover it with her gloved hand, but Lucy had seen, she was pretty happy Juvia had gotten out of work to have fun. Lucy wondered if Juvia had butterflies in her stomach, she didn't know what was normal on a first date, she knew her and Natsu had had fun, but she wondered if Juvia was experiencing something more than Lucy was getting to feel.

As Magnolia station approached, Natsu sprinted past the girls and let himself fall out of the train's doors, Lucy giggled as she even saw tears form at the corner of his eyes; the poor hothead was so miserable.

Lucy watched as Juvia had grabbed for Gray's hand immediately as soon as his babysitting duties for Natsu were over on the train. Lucy looked over to Natsu and down at his hand, he was just grumbling over the trip, not even looking at her. If she wanted to be a writer, she would have to be bold. She looked straight ahead as she grabbed his hand, out of the corner of her eye she seen him react, but she didn't dare look at him.

Natsu didn't say anything, he allowed his hand to open and feather Lucy's fingers in, allowing them to join in the cracks of his. Lucy felt her heart speed up, she smiled to herself that this idea was working. She could feel the heat burning in her chest, her heart pumping excitedly at the new feeling. Lucy was holding a boy's hand! It was tiny steps, but still a step.

When they did look at each other, catching each other in the act, they grinned and carried on walking, their hands swaying playfully as they swayed their arms. Reaching the guild caused a new level of fear for Lucy as she remembered Natsu didn't want to be accused of anything and so she would have to keep this real. Looking over at her best friend, she found herself thinking this was surprisingly easy to pretend.

Mirajane was the only one who noticed, everyone else was drunk and used to their closeness. Luckily for the pair, Gray and his new face were the ones receiving the questions. Lucy and Natsu found themselves at the bar and Mirajane smiled, looking pleased.

"Double Date?" She asked, and Lucy nodded, it seemed it ended up that way. "I'm glad, I was wondering when you would get a boyfriend, Lucy!"

"Surely free pints to celebrate!" Natsu was sure happy to be back on his home turf, Natsu was partially raised in Fairy Tail, it was where their parents had hung out, once the children were introduced to each other, they joined their parents to meet up with their friends. Mirajane said nothing, simply poured out the pints and handed one to Natsu and one to Lucy. She left Natsu to enjoy both as she saw her friends calling her over.

"How was it?" Erza asked, there were many glasses scattered on the table, so Lucy presumed Cana must be somewhere around.

"Really good! It's always nice to see a new side of Natsu, that softer side."

"Are you excited to start writing?" Levy said, offering Lucy her own drink, which Lucy accepted and began sipping at.

"Yes, I've got a free schedule tomorrow, I was thinking of starting to write it, I'll have to see what you guys think." The girls weren't noticing how Gray had joined Natsu at the bar, which is where Cana had once again found herself at, the three of them seemingly downing many shots.

"Guys! Listen up!" Cana's voice called out, all the locals of the pub knowing to look over at the renowned figure of Fairy Tail. "We are celebrating with our two boys, Gray and Natsu have finally found girls to date!" Cheers erupted throughout the pub as Lucy found herself going red as Erza and Levy stared directly at her.

Gray disappeared back into the crowds to apologise to the newly joined member of the gang Juvia, whereas Natsu wasn't as quiet as Lucy hoped. He sought her out and ran up to her, she smelt the stronger alcohol on his breath as she allowed him to pull her out of her seat. He placed his hands around her thighs as he lifted her up and spun her around, there was no doubt as to who Natsu was dating.

"I am dating Lucy Heartfilia!" Lucy couldn't help enjoy the moment as she was spun by the drunk state of Natsu, it was nice to see someone show her off. Her hands were gripped around his neck and when he put her down, she felt herself flustered and could feel strands of blond hair tangled out of her ponytail.

Natsu still stood close by her, she wondered if he would kiss her, and even more she wondered if she would kiss him back. He didn't. Natsu pulled her in for a hug and spun them together one last time before Lucy laughed and announced to everyone she would take the idiot home. She couldn't help getting embarrassed by the cheers that echoed behind her, they didn't think they were doing _that_ did they? Lucy shrugged off the idea and had Natsu's arm around her the whole trip, she told herself she was doing it to help support him, the truth was it was nice.


	4. Chapter 4

"I'm dying." He groaned out, his head pressed deep into pushed up pillows, a damp cloth pressed to his neck.

"You're not dying, you're hungover." Lucy exclaimed, no sympathy in her voice, she was quite used to dealing with Cana in the mornings after an extravagant night out, she knew if she babied Natsu, he would lounge around all day, expecting her to wait hand and foot on him.

"Same thing." He grumbled out, his voice distorted as it came from the plush fabric his face was buried in.

"You know you'll have to leave eventually, you have Happy to feed." Lucy noted, looking over to his statuesque form on the couch, he hadn't moved since he had woken up. Lucy had been the ever-wonderful person she was and left a glass of water and some aspirin next to it, the bastard had spilled its contents all over her floor. Of course, she retrieved him another glass, but she brought it over with spite.

He seemed to acknowledge he couldn't stay in bed all day, yet part of him was choosing to ignore that. "Just this once, you get coffee. But I'm not seeing you the rest of the day, that's the deal!" She knew better than to have Natsu in her home, high on caffeine, she had too many breakable things casually laying around.

He was gone within the hour, thankfully for her, she had managed to avoid an awkward conversation on what had occurred last night, and if it meant anything. More importantly, she had the rest of her day to finally commit to her novel.

"The sooner I finish this, the sooner me and Natsu can go back to normal." She stopped in the middle of a chuckle, the affection was comforting. When their hands were together, Lucy had found she enjoyed the feeling, it was a nice luxury to have in their arrangement. However, the sooner she had understood the gist of dating, there was no point in continuing. The thought saddened her slightly.

"No more on that, let's start writing about Anna and the mysterious R." Lucy only had a base plot lined out in her head, those annoying pestering details eluded her.

Her computer loaded up and once more, the white screen was the only thing to show of her work. Hoping today was the day she would fix that, she started to write.

 _"Why won't you tell me your name, Sir?" Anna begged, pleading to call him something, but he had ushered her every time she tried to ask._

 _"If I tell you my name, you'll fall in love with me." The man replied, his hand reaching for Anna's as he placed a slight kiss on her knuckles. Anna wasn't impressed, she had had many suitors do the same thing, she gave them one go at it, if they tried again she would use her hand to issue them a slap._

 _"Love is not real, stranger."_

Lucy looked at the few paragraphs she had added and, in a temper, slammed the laptop's lid. She wasn't writing like she usually did. She was looking at this all wrong, was it Anna that didn't believe in love or R, she was losing herself in the repetitive words.  
"I can't have writer's block, not after yesterday!" She was frustrated at herself and thought about yesterday in itself.

 _"Why are you so kind to me?" Anna asked, the sun's heat breathing down hard on the pair._

 _"You are important to me." He replied, he smiled, the man was emotional and strong and she found herself often laughing alongside him, no other man had made her laugh so._

 _"I see the Lord Lance is jealous of you, Sir."_

"Nope. Still horrible." Lucy thought that perhaps part of her was simply blaming the characters, they were too boring, they were just dancing around, not doing anything exciting. She exhaled regrettably that she was the one who had to make the characters be interesting.  
"Maybe Levy can help me." Lucy said aloud to herself and called the reader over. She arrived swiftly and hugged Lucy upon seeing her.

"You really are a Saint, the boys wanted me to go to the other side of town just to see this shitty 'Phantom Lord' band that's playing." Levy let herself walk in and placed her satchel down by the door, seemingly exasperated by the mere thought of seeing the band.

"Jet and Droy still fighting over you?" Lucy asked, looking over at her friend. Levy was brilliant in every sense; her intellect had no rival and had a secret ferocity she'd only seen Natsu beat. However, the two men who were in Levy's life also saw this brilliance and both had their eyes fixated on her.

"I like them, I do. But it's the little things, you know?" She started, her hand playing in her hair as she thought of her friends. "Droy is scared of spiders! Spiders, Lucy! They're just little arachnids!" Lucy didn't want to point out she also didn't find the eight-legged things nice to look at.

"And Jet?"

"He's so sporty and always asks if I want to go on a run. Running Lucy! I like a rare jog, sure, but my little legs can't do that every morning!" Lucy laughed over the idea of Levy having to jog alongside Jet. Jet ran like no one else and poor Levy didn't exactly have the longest legs there was, it must have been a struggle for her to keep up, no matter how resilient and stubborn she was.

"So, how would you talk about your dream man then?" Lucy asked Levy, watching as the girl seemed to blush, had Levy thought about this before?

"I want someone who's different, someone who's not afraid to be themselves, someone who doesn't look at me as this perfect angel like Jet and Droy do." She sighed and looked back over to the blonde. "What about you, has Natsu been who you expected?" The question about Natsu was expected, she moved beside her friend and brought her legs up to rest.

"There's nothing wrong. We've been friends for years, so we obviously get along." Levy sensed the word coming even before Lucy had ushered it.  
"But?"  
"But seeing Juvia act around Gray, I don't have that with Natsu." Levy frowned at her friend's confession and moved her form closer to Lucy's, letting her arms wrap around her friend.

"There's nothing wrong with that comfort, who's to say if it's right or wrong." Lucy nodded and brought her friend over to her laptop and let her read through the slight drafts she had made for herself. She was embarrassed even to have Levy look at them, she wondered just how she would deal if she ever did manage to get the books published.

"Well, you're right in you are missing something. This reads like most books I've read, it doesn't have that 'Lucy' signature." The writer groaned, knowing full well her friend was right in this situation; who was she kidding, Levy was always right in any situation.

"Maybe I need to clear my head." Levy nodded, running to pick up her satchel and sprinted back into Lucy's room to pick up her favourite notebooks, added with a few worn-out pens.

"Lucy Heartfilia, writer extraordinaire, you are going to write a rough chapter draft by tonight." Lucy smiled and her friend's excitement and followed her along without any complaint.

It was nice to walk around the city, Levy insisted that Lucy was to have her notebook out at all times and just write about everything and anything she spotted, even if it was the simplest of inspiration that came her way. Writing was better than no writing.  
Lucy had to admit they ended up spending a good and productive day together, Levy toured her around many roads which led to many sights. She was spoiled in friendship. The beauty of Magnolia was something to be praised, she liked its culture and architecture, the simple chaos the whole place had.

Their chatter was interrupted by Levy's phone going off, stopping in the middle of the pathway, Levy picked up the phone and groaned, so Jet or Droy then, and placed it to her ear. "What's up?" She asked casually, winking to Lucy. "Is he okay?" Lucy couldn't help scrunching her face as Levy's tone turned and there was yells from the other side of the call. "I'm on my way! Sorry, Lucy some guy from that band they went to go see ended up getting in a fight with Jet!"

"Go, you're probably the only one who can help calm this down, I'll come with you." Lucy added in for good measure, there wasn't any chance she was going to let her friend go into a bar fight alone.

Phantom Lord wasn't local is the first thing Lucy found out when she entered into the rustic atmosphere of the bar. The smell of stale beer and wine tickled at her senses. Levy was the first to react as she marched straight over to where a tall man had Jet in a headlock.

"Let go of him, asswipe!" Levy screamed, going as far as to reach for the burly man's bicep and attempt to rip his hold off herself.

"Asswipe? Wow, little shrimp really knows how to pick the insults." The man laughed, causing his friends behind him to laugh along with him, deciding to mock Levy's stature.

"Leave them alone!" Lucy called, making her way to the commotion, the man's form was terrifying. He let Jet go who stumbled slightly as Droy helped him stand straight again. The man bore piercings scattered all over his face, replacing eyebrows, and alongside his nose, there were even a few under his lips.

"They started on me, Blondie." His voice was gruff, and he looked over Levy, Lucy felt her instincts kick in as she was ready to jump to shield her from any movement Gajeel would make, Jet and Droy had the same thought. "Next time your groupies decide to laugh at a musician, make sure they can handle the consequences."

"Gajeel, Kitty's calling for you, let's go." Gajeel smirked at the notion of this 'Kitty' character, Lucy presumed it was some pompous woman he would spend the night with. Luckily, it was enough to drag Gajeel's attention away as he moved to leave but Levy wasn't done with him yet.

"Maybe you should just accept you're a shit musician!" She was angry, as much as Levy teased Jet and Droy for their unrequited love, they were still her childhood friends and she was loyal to them.

The band's members all snickered as Gajeel was being stood up to by a small girl such as Levy. He moved over to her and had the audacity to bend his knees a little to emphasise on her height as he struggle to get to eye-level with her.

"I am amazing, shrimp." Lucy could see Levy had a slight shake, but she held her ground.

"Don't ever touch my friends again." Gajeel smirked and returned to his standing height, he didn't say another word, only looked impressed at her pride as he and the grew left the small group of them be. "What were you guys thinking insulting the band playing!" She said as she screamed at her wounded mates.

"It was awful, Levy!"

"It was burning our ears!"

Lucy found herself laughing at Jet and Droy's description over Gajeel's playing, they really hadn't been impressed by him, she found herself suddenly wanting to write. The adrenaline of the situation had just urged her to do something, thankfully it wasn't asking her to fight, it was asking her to jot it down.

"I'm going to head home, Levy. Take care of them." She said with a wink, Levy groaned and stared at Lucy, knowing full well they would ask Levy to nurse them back to full health, even though it was apparent they only had received slight bruises and cuts.

The sky was giving off an impressive ombre display, the pink hue of the sun disappearing as the shades of dark blue and indigo took over. She sat down gracefully under a strong oak tree and found herself unable to stop smiling as the stars came out to bless her. The stars reminded her of her mother, there was no better inspiration for her than right now in this moment. Strangely enough, she was also thinking of the intense spark of fire Levy had showed when she faced off against Gajeel's iron posture.

 _The stars were smiling as the pair found themselves in a locked embrace, a secret between them, sealed away so their families would never find out. Anna had never once felt so strongly towards someone like this, but he had awoken something within her. Something of passion and lust, she even teetered on the idea of love. But she knew those words were not meant to be spoken; not yet._

 _"You are mine, forevermore." He said, strong like him, the two argued and fought in verbal matches that neither could win, but when they settled they realised a bond had been forged between them._

 _"I am yours." She confirmed, the pair for once finding something to agree on._

Lucy hummed, pleased she had managed to write something that she had enjoyed putting down on paper, it was nice to become invested in her work again. She looked up at the sparkling sky again and was pleased that nothing had changed, they still glistened honouring an unknown contract between them and the night.


	5. Chapter 5

"Natsu, you wouldn't believe the size of this guy!" Lucy exclaimed, her arms stretched wide on either side of her, blowing up Gajeel's proportions, but to her small form, he had appeared huge.

"Man, I shoulda' been there! I coulda' totally taken him down!" That was Natsu, always wanting to show off he was the toughest _man_ about, Erza won the vote for toughest person, even he couldn't take that claim away from her.

"You didn't need to, Levy was tough as nails standing up for her friends." Lucy was happy the guy didn't try to even lay a finger on Levy, there would have been outcry in Fairy Tail if it had have happened. The pair were once more swinging arms up and down as they playfully walked in a brisk through the markets.

"Levy's great, we should get some dinner, I'm starved." Lucy didn't want to mention how he had just had a large lunch, and even she was still a little stuffed from simply sharing the food, but she knew she wouldn't be able to tear Natsu away from this.

"There's a cute restaurant up ahead, 'Blue Pegasus', what about there?" Natsu knew he didn't want to go there exclusively, it was one of those prestigious places in which portion sizes were, for some ungodly reason, were a quarter of the size than they should have been. He knew he would have argued with Lucy, his best friend, and taken her to another place he knew where they could have eaten a buffet for half the price. But this wasn't Lucy, his best friend, this was Lucy, his date.

"Yeah, let's go." He said, attempting to hide his grumble as they walked into the fine establishment. Lucy was in awe of the sight around her, this was where they should have gone on their first date, it was extravagant! She saw all the people around her wearing dresses and suits, and seemed to shuffle back, feeling underdressed.

Natsu was not allowing her to back out now, he pulled her forward, their hands still clasped as he waved to the server at the front counter. "Hey Miss, any chance of a table for two?" Natsu asked, looking around at the busy atmosphere that the restaurant had.

"Oh? A walk in, we normal ask guests to book ahead…" She trailed off, Natsu wanted to treat Lucy, she deserved the very best and if she didn't have a guy before get to lavish here to places like this, then it would be Natsu's job to make sure she had the finest time.

"Hush Jenny, we cannot stand in the way of young love! I know a spare table!" The server looked over and nodded, a larger weighted man pranced over to them and Jenny smiled at her, presumably, manager. The man wore a fine dress and wore a matching black blazer as they followed him to a secluded section in the back, an area more reserved for VIPs of the restaurant. Lucy couldn't help but feel a little spoiled that the kind manager had done this favour to them, she thanked him as he told them a waiter would bring menus over shortly.

Lucy and Natsu grinned at each other, looking around the ruby columns and dazzling chandeliers, it felt like being in a mansion again.

"I wonder what beauty must have caught Bob's eye, but I can see surely, it must be you." Lucy looked from the surroundings to a man who had walked over, his formal attire suggesting to her he was her waiter, Natsu was already having grabby hands towards the menus.

She didn't know how to reply as he calmly placed the menus down in front of them and gazed back at Lucy. "May the fine lady be having a dash of red or white tonight?" Lucy blushed at his tone and looked to Natsu who didn't seem at all interested, he was drooling at the food items.

"Red, please. Natsu?" She called, "Would you like a glass of wine?"

"Whatever you're having will do." He said, dropping his menu down and finally acknowledging the waiter himself. "Hey…Hibiki," he said as he looked at the man's name badge "why did we get a spot here when we didn't have a reservation?" The man smiled at Natsu and flaunted a hand in the arm, as though he was about to perform a salsa.

"Why, Master Bob adores young couples, he always wants to treat everyone to a night at Blue Pegasus." Natsu looked to Lucy and silently, they were able to be agree that this man was slightly over the top, it seemed to be the norm here however. "I'll be back shortly with your drinks while you look over the menus." He left swiftly, ushering a wink to Lucy before he left.

"Lucy, have you seen the size of the steaks they serve!" Natsu looked at her as though he was in heaven, every bad thought he had about this place was gone as he was now able to see just what luxuries they had.

"I'm glad you're enjoying yourself." She chuckled, looking down at the menu herself, it was true they had fine cuisines, but Lucy couldn't help but notice the price tag on many of the items were also extravagant, she was glad she was only paying for half.

"How's the novel coming along?" Natsu asked, placing the menu back down on table to let it lay.

"Good! I sat under this huge tree and just watched the stars, it truly was beautiful." Lucy hummed, remembering that she had managed to write a few more pages when she had returned home. She heard a vibration call out as Natsu looked to his phone and ended the noise.

"Unknown number." He explained and went back to listening about her novel. Before Lucy could even begin to explain what she had managed to write, his phone went off again.

"Might be easy to just answer it." She said, watching as he pressed accept on the call.

"Hello?" He answered, brash and loud. Lucy groaned as the guests of the restaurant were now staring at them, she tried to look down at her menu and ignore the beading eyes of the room glaring daggers at her date. "What?" Lucy had only heard Natsu that serious a few times in her life, it caused alarm bells in her body.

She watched as the life drained from his face, and he suddenly looked pale and lost for words. She wanted to ask if he was okay, but she didn't know if he was ready to be taken away from the phone call. Hibiki pranced over with their drinks and Natsu looked apologetic to her. "I'm going to finish this outside, I'll be back soon." He whispered, worried he'd offended her, but Lucy smiled and nodded, this call seemed important.

"Everything all right?" Hibiki asked, a constant smile plastered on his face, she didn't know if it was just because he was on shift or not.

"Yeah, just an important call he had to take." She explained.

"I'll come back to your orders when he's returned." And he left her, now alone at the table.

"Tough break." She wasn't sure if that voice had been talking about, so she chanced herself to look behind her, and sure enough the person sitting next to her had turned his body around to face her.

"It's nothing." She simply commented and turned back to look at the empty chair in front of her.

"First date?" The voice asked, it had a pearly undertone, silky and smooth, yet she was bothered he was still talking to her.

"None of your business." She ushered to him, not even turning around again to face him.

"You are right. I apologise, I will not say anymore." She sighed and smiled to herself that thankfully she would be left alone now. "Actually, it is going to bother me if I do not." Lucy scoffed and with that, did allow herself to turn around and take a look at the man who was bothering her.

He was much like the other guest, adorned in a fine suit which fitted his body perfectly, no doubt it was tailored to his fit only. She had once thought Natsu had the messiest lock of hair she had ever seen, but this man was making her rethink that statement. Orange-flamed spikes protruded out forming a mane around his face, it was odd to see just a fancy figure who such unruly hair.

"Maybe you should worry about your own date." She challenged back at him, nodding over to the woman who was clearly not amused by her date's antics of interacting with another woman. Her arms were crossed around her chest, as her face distained as she glared at the redhead.

"Loke, seriously? I've been trying to take you out for months!" She sneered at him, Lucy saw the man, Loke, look sorry at her as he was forced to turn away from her and return back to his own date. Lucy couldn't help but eavesdrop, after all, it was only fair she returned the favour on him.

"You are right, Gretel, my full attention is yours once more." Lucy felt sick as she heard the woman coo right back into Loke's charm, how could she allow him back in her good books just that quickly?

Lucy knew she was being rude, but she did at least try to hide her chuckles and not to have the attention spurred on her again. No luck. He turned over again, she knew this because she heard a feminine 'huff' once more.

"You have an adorable laugh, why hide it?" She turned to look at him again, raising an eyebrow at his feeble attempt at flirtation. It seemed to rile up the other woman, _Gretel_ , as she took off and left the pair alone. Now, Lucy did not hold back as she laughed straight in front of him. "What is it?" He asked, finding her laugh infectious as he smiled back, finding himself wanting to be in on the joke.

"Gretel? Really? Does she have a brother called Hansel?" She watched as the man stared blankly at her before he finally caught onto the joke and chuckled lowly at her humour. She watched as remarkably the man didn't have any prominent laughter lines paint his face as he snickered.

"You win, Princess." Lucy was taken aback by the nickname, she had only just made one joke with him and he was already endearing her, she would quickly have to stop him. "I will go out with you." Lucy blinked at him, and motioned to the other seat opposite her, unfortunately it was still empty.

"I'm literally on a date right now." She was unimpressed and could easily tell Loke was used to getting his way with woman, used to not having any problem getting just what and who he wanted. Well, unfortunately for him, Lucy wasn't about to be his new floozy.

"At least give me the privilege of knowing your name."

"Luigi." She watched him look away and bite his lip as he smiled at her comment

"I'm Ronald McDonald." He joked back and held a hand out to her, she saw two rings on his fingers, one gold, one silver. She wondered if they were special to him, or if he wore them because of the price tag they came with.

"Ah, too late. Your date already confessed your name is Loke." She smirked back at him, though she did allow him to shake her hand. She didn't allow herself to look at him intently, she knew he was handsome, but she didn't dare start to notice the details of his face.

"Lucy." At the sound of her real name, she turned around and saw Natsu had returned, she stood up and went to him as she noticed he was shaking.

"Natsu! What happened?" She asked, the worry she had was clear in her voice.

"I'm not feeling well." Lucy knew it looked that way. He was pale and shaking, he could have passed for being ill very well. But Lucy knew Natsu, she knew there was something bouncing in his voice, he was lying. She knew he wouldn't have just casually lied to her over nothing, something serious must have happened, though she wished he didn't hide it from her.

"Why don't we catch up later, or tomorrow, when you're feeling better?" Natsu looked relieved, believing she had bought it, he opened his wallet to pay for the wine when a familiar voice stepped in.

"No worries, friend, I got it. Lucy helped me get out of a sticky situation, so think of this as a thank-you." Natsu looked over Lucy at the taller man who had brushed himself up next to her in order to drop down a few bills to cover the expenses. Natsu, oblivious as ever, gave the unknown man a toothy grin alongside a thumbs-up.

"You're the best!" Lucy smiled at Natsu and gave him a hug. "Want me to walk you home?" He asked politely, and Lucy shook her head.

"I'm going to stop by the park and try writing some more."

"Okay, be safe!" He called out as he kissed her cheek and practically sprinted out of the venue. Lucy felt her stomach drop as she watched him go, she had never known Natsu to act so strangely before, she would have to ask Erza about this later. If anyone could get the dragon-brained idiot to confess what was up, it was her.

"Lucy, huh?"

She watched as the man moved around the table to sit himself down in Natsu's abandoned chair.

"Yeah, like 'Lucy in the sky with diamonds'." She said softly, though she made no motion to re-sit back down.

"You are the diamond." She couldn't help the burst of laughter that escaped her.

"Ooh, weak line."

"Yeah, it only works on Lucy's." She rolled her eyes and grabbed for her bag, she had no intention of continuing to amuse him. "Looks like I get my date." He mused, and Lucy stared at him and threw the handbag around her shoulder with an attitude.

"No date, I'm heading to the park." He stood up as she made the move to leave and placed his hands together, in a praying motion, Lucy wondered if the reason this guy got dates was more due to his relentless stubbornness to not give up.

"No date." He confirmed, raising Lucy's suspicion. "But, you do deserve dinner. Look, you got a table at this place, people normally have to wait months. Consider this 'hanging out' and let me treat you to dinner." Lucy had to admit, the idea sounded pleasant. She would never take advantage of her friends, hence why with Natsu they went half on any expenses, but a complete stranger who wanted to buy her food at a posh restaurant? Lucy could already feel a smirk on her face.

"Just this once." She confirmed and watched as like a puppy, he excitedly ran past her to pull out her chair. "This isn't a date." Lucy stared at him, ushering to the gesture.

"Of course not, I am simply a gentleman." He watched as Lucy rolled her eyes and the pair of them sat down.

"Does a gentleman usually ignore his date to talk to another woman, in front of her I may add?" The man looked sheepish at the accusation and shrugged his shoulders as he stared at her.

"Fine, that was a dick move, but she knew I did not like her, I have been avoiding her for months." Lucy did recall the woman had announced she had tried to ask him out many times, was she really that desperate to go out with this man. "What about you, why you out here with Pinky?"

" _Natsu_ is my best friend, we recently decided to try dating." She watched as Loke's face seemed to scrunch up, but quickly relaxed, attempting to recompose himself from showing the emotion.

"Never works." He said, and Lucy poked his arm to have him continue. "You are best friends for a reason, and you're also not dating for a reason." He explained to which left Lucy a little lost.

"But we are dating?"

"Only to try, you see best friends eventually down the line will try to date because the thought of 'something more' is always there, once you go down that line you realise you were better off as best friends."

"You're a love-expert, huh?"

"The one and only. I know a lot about flirting and lust more than love." Lucy thought to herself, Natsu didn't really know much about that stuff either, she wondered if Loke could be a missing link.

"Hmm."

"Hmm?" He gazed at her, and she protruded a notepad out from her handbag and pointed to it.

"I'm writing a romance novel, I was wondering if you'd be able to help me figure out how to write all those feelings?" She asked, hoping that the thought didn't look too much like a promiscuous offer.

"A writer? I like it." He smiled, leaning back in his seat as he waved Hibiki back over. "Hibiki, the chef's specials for both myself and Lucy tonight, we have much to discuss." Lucy wondered just what she got herself into with this chance meeting.

"Absolutely, Mr. King." King, the surname was familiar to Lucy; but she couldn't place it.

He refused to talk about it over dinner but promised they would meet up again the next day and he would help her with any questions she might have. Lucy was wary of him, most indefinitely, but he seemed to want to meet up at a public place, so she figured she would take the chance and hope he wasn't a murderer.


	6. Chapter 6

She never ended up going to the park after all. Loke had offered her a ride home, though she refused, she didn't even allow him her phone number, only the time and place to meet tomorrow to help lecture her for her novel. Loke surprisingly didn't fight her on that, he bowed and left her to walk by herself.

Mostly, her thoughts worried about Natsu. She had sent him a text when she returned home, but he messaged her back saying he wasn't able to come over. That left her thinking about the stranger she had become acquainted with, Loke. She only was with him for a short amount of time, but she already knew he was a player; the king of flirting. He honestly would be perfect in helping her novel, she just didn't know how to tell Natsu she was asking another guy for advice and help.

True to his word, Natsu met with her in Fairy Tail's pub and she was pleased to see he looked much better, he was like his old self again. Lucy had noticed something was off between them, Natsu wasn't talking to her about yesterday at all. She was worried what had happened, but she knew Natsu would tell her when he was ready.

"Do you remember that guy that paid for our wine?" Lucy started, knowing she couldn't keep this a secret from her best friend, she owed it to him to be truthful to him.

"Yeah, what about him?" Natsu wasn't paying much attention, he had gotten distracted flipping off Gray at the other side of the bar who had brought Juvia back once more, it was nice for Lucy to see Gray trying with someone.

"He bought me dinner." That caught Natsu's attention, he whipped his head around to look at her, and look affronted.

"Even though he knew you were there for a date with me?"

"Yeah, I told him that it wasn't a date, he's a total player, I wouldn't let him near me." Lucy comforted him, she knew that was what Natsu needed to hear, that he had Lucy's trust and vice versa. "I actually think he could help me in my novel, he does have experience in flirting."

"You just met him Lucy!" Natsu sneered, clearly not impressed by her suggestion. "Look, I'm sorry, I trust you, I do, I just think he's going to just try get in your pants." Lucy smiled softly at him, she didn't want to remind him they weren't really dating, she liked seeing him this passionate about protecting her.

"I know, I'm just going to use him for his knowledge instead of him using me." She said, winking at Natsu who seemed to understand her situation with Loke and he grinned at her to show he wasn't annoyed at her, that everything between them was still okay.

"You think Gray's banged Juvia yet?" Came the voice of Cana as she slid in next to Lucy. Lucy's face flushed as she hid her face with her hands.

"Ew, I do not want to think about that!" She screeched as she looked over to Natsu who looked disgusted himself.

"I don't even think the Ice Spewer had a sex life." Natsu spat, glaring at the shirtless man who wasn't even looking at Juvia, though she seemed to be talking to him. She must have said something as he looked at her to respond. Lucy had never seen Gray with a woman before, sure he and Cana flirted when they were drunk, but it had never gone anywhere serious, Gray had a drunken flirtatious nature, but he was casual about it like most things in his life.

"I can tell Juvia's really into him." Cana added in, "She's giving off so many signals."

"If she keeps talking about Gray having sex, I am definitely burning my ears off." Natsu slouched himself down in the booth as Lucy and Cana giggled amongst themselves. Lucy looked to Natsu, she wondered if he had thought about them engaging in sexual acts, she hoped not, something about having sex with Natsu felt odd to her.

Natsu made a point to the girls that he was going to find out the gossip between the pair, hence he sauntered over to them and interrupted their conversation. It was clear from her face that Juvia wasn't at all impressed with Natsu and his attitude which just seemed to make Gray be more interested in her.

Lucy was annoyed she hadn't gotten the chance to see Erza or Levy at Fairy Tail yet. She had wanted to tell them her plan about Loke, especially now Natsu was okay with it. With a sigh, she let herself say her goodbyes to Cana as she made her way to the neighbouring park, she oddly wondered why Loke would choose here as a place to talk.

She noted how she couldn't see him anywhere and would only allow herself to wait twenty minutes at most for him, if he forgot, so be it, she would forget him completely and find another way to learn about flirting. Lucy found a cosy bench to sit down on and begun reading, it was tranquil for her to read like this, the weather was starting to get nice again as Spring was creeping back upon them.

"What are you reading?" She looked up and gave a polite smile as she closed the book and made to put it in her bag, yet Loke didn't say anything, he simply repeated his question.

"Oh, it's just some fairy tales." Loke smiled, not expecting that answer.

"What kind?" His questions were odd, they were here to discuss on how he could help with her novel, but it was nice for someone to be interested in her reading besides Levy.

"A princess gets turned into a dragon and none of the townspeople know that it's her, so they try to hunt her by sending the prince after her, but it's a stable boy who is kind to her." There was something alluring in the idea of forbidden love, Lucy had always adored fantasy, even as a young girl when her mother would read to her.

"That sounds wonderful, you'll have to send me the title." Lucy nodded as Loke held out his hand for her to take, she rolled her eyes and ignored it, getting up on her own and moving to where he led them, beside some trees, she had to admit, the view around them was nice. "Romance is all about things, the things we buy for someone, the things we do and say." Lucy was almost tempted to write that down, she didn't want Loke laughing at her though, so she resisted and relied on memory.

Loke positioned a hand on her waist and watched her for any sign of reluctance of refusal as his other hand came up to cup her chin. "Flirting is all about signals, passion is all about feelings through touch." Lucy could feel the warmth of his hand on her, it was enough to make her gulp. The warmth was electrifying as it twisted something within her nerves.

All she could do is look at him. He was gorgeous, a true personification of a handsome gentleman. Like yesterday, he wore a suit, this one was darker and had a red tie. The thing she couldn't tear her eyes away from was his eyes; truly beautiful. Shades were tucked away in his vest and she was pleased, she didn't want to see these eyes hidden, she was jealous her eyes were so plain compared to his.

A mini universe swam in his iris', golden and vibrant sparks jumped out from the hazel eyes he bore, Lucy had never seen such sparkling eyes. He seemed to sense her thoughts and let his hand leave her chin, to trace the soft skin of her cheek, it was then she seen him pulling himself towards her and she snapped back to reality.

Loke was doubled over in front of her, clutching his stomach where her leg had kicked him.

"I can't believe I have to verbalise that you are not kissing me." She wanted him to be ashamed, apologise for his behaviour, but he laughed.

"You are an amazing woman; not once have I ever been turned down like that." He seemed to recover fast, though Lucy knew she had definitely bruised his ego.

"I liked the move, but you don't get to kiss me." She winked at him which just seemed to stir him even more. "No more touching, only talking." She said, making the intent between them clear, he wasn't winning her over with simple charades. He grudgingly accepted as the pair of them settled beneath the trees and Loke gave her his signature lines he liked to use.

"That does not work!" Lucy laughed, shocked that the idea of these cheesy lines could work for him.

"It does, I promise." Loke was laughing with her, he knew the lines he used would never work on Lucy, it was nice someone was able to call him out like this.

"They're so soppy, they actually fit well into my piece." She said, she knew she had wanted the characters to hold an elegant and Victorian theme, where balls and gowns were still common era.

She caught Loke staring at her numerous times that afternoon, he never once was ashamed of being caught, instead he would dangerously smirk at her and she would be the one to blush and look away. It was nice for Lucy to receive attention from someone, but Loke wasn't her type; he was a lady-killer. "All right, think you can help me differ the words used for lust and love now?" Lucy wondered if Loke had ever been in love, he didn't seem like it,

He stopped and tapped a finger on his chin, in thought.

"Lust is the attraction, the want you get from seeing someone." Lucy watched as he reached for his shades and put them on, she was slightly disappointed; he had lovely eyes. Though now he wasn't able to stare at her so intently which made her slightly more relaxed.

"And love?" She asked, she knew this was a dangerous question to ask, it was a confession she wasn't in love with Natsu, which could have given Loke hope to continue to pursue her.

"Love is when there are no words." Loke's voice was softer, sincerer. "Love is sacrificing everything to make another person happy; even if it means sacrificing your own." Lucy was startled at Loke's words, perhaps the person he appeared to be was just an act, there was a gut feeling twisting inside her that Loke knew more about the feelings of love than he was willing to admit.

Lucy and Loke didn't spend long discussing words and phrases she could use, Lucy was astonished to find that Loke also had a passion for literature, hence why he knew how to convey feelings into words, a lot better than she could.

"My friends have finally showed up at our local bar, I'm going to go meet them now." She explained to him as she started gathering up her things, Loke only nodded, he didn't say much, he knew he would miss her fierce talk. "Want to come as well?" Lucy knew the dangers of introducing Loke to her friends, she didn't want them to presume anything between them, but she was mannerly, it felt right to at least give him an invite.

"I would love to." Walking to Fairy Tail caused Lucy to get anxious, she didn't really know Loke, yet she knew they were now acquaintances, they had surprisingly gotten along quite well today.

When they walked in through the doors, Lucy almost pushed Loke straight back out of the doors, they were all fighting! Loke moved her to the side of him where he led them around the side, a safe spot in the scene. Levy called for her and Loke guided her safely to the push.

She couldn't hear anything due to the sound of wooden chairs being thrown across the room, the loud crashing of wood breaking caused Lucy to duck on instinct, despite having Loke's body on her side for protection.

"Eh, Lucy who's this?" Came the voice of Levy, eyes wide at seeing such a formal-dressed man at Fairy Tail; most were shirtless Lucy had to admit.

"This is Loke, he was a playboy who asked him out when I was with Natsu." Lucy giggled at the thought of their situation now, Levy looked embarrassed for her whilst Erza was glaring intensely at him. Poor Loke didn't know what was coming. "I thought he could help me with dialogue in my novel." That didn't seem to ease Erza's death-stares.

"And I am in your debt, you have introduced me to such pretty ladies." She didn't have time to warn Loke, Levy seemed to blush and hide in her seat whereas Erza, ever dominant as always reached into her leg strap and stabbed a knife into the wooden table. Lucy mouthed an 'I'm sorry,' to Loke, but he didn't look fazed, in fact the sorry man looked like he was going to challenge Erza's power move.

"If you dare touch Lucy I will see to myself that when Natsu comes to scorch you, there won't even be a body for him to find." There was no sarcasm or joke in Erza's tone, even Lucy was scared, and she wasn't even the one being interrogated. Loke adjusted his glasses, bringing the shades down slightly to see the woman in full vision.

"Would you rather I touch you instead?"

There were no words next, Erza had grabbed the stuck knife and yanked it out with such a ferocity that wooden splinters flew off from the motion. Lucy gulped as Levy made a move to grab her back, but Loke accepted the punch, lucky for him the knife was a threatening tool only; she hoped. Erza had her hand grabbing his shirt, gripped so tight not even Loke could over-power her. For someone who was half on a table, Erza's stance was as strong as ever. She had no shame in her actions.

"This isn't a game, Lucy is precious, and she doesn't need a troublemaker like you."

"Erza!" They had all looked over and were now aware that they were now the main attraction in the bar. Levy looked away, not tearing her eyes away from Erza, who had reluctantly let go of the play-boy as Mirajane yelled out to her. Natsu and Gray had even stopped their fighting, in fact both of them were glaring intently at Loke; Natsu remember him.

"I think it would be best if I stepped out." Loke stood up and brushed off any grime or ruffles made in his shirt; he was a proper man after all. "I will see you soon, Princess." He purred out the nickname and even Lucy couldn't stop blushing from the name, he was shameless. She watched as he walked out, he wasn't running, he was strutting. Lucy wasn't convinced he could walk out from a situation like that so easily, something about it told her there was more than Loke was letting on. She wouldn't give him the satisfaction of following him though, she was focused on Natsu's form walking over to their booth.

"Good work, Erza!" Natsu cheered as he went for a high-five, Erza didn't respond to Natsu, she looked at Lucy, trying to read her expression, unfortunately even Lucy didn't know how to feel. "What is that creep's problem?" He sneered, looking over to the door where he barely caught a glimpse of Gray leaving after him.

Lucy seemed more distant than normal, they all noticed. Erza suggested that her and Natsu get a drink, which left just Levy and her. Levy moved to sit next to Lucy. She didn't like the sullen look on Lucy's face, it wasn't usual she saw the blonde so down, she was always smiling. Levy didn't have to say anything, Lucy sighed and looked at her friend, looking disappointed.

"I know everyone's got this perception of Loke, but when we were out at the park talking, he was like a different person." Levy seemed to soften at those words and placed a hand on Lucy's shoulder.

"Don't you think that was part of his play?" Lucy's eyes widened, as though she was so trusting that the thought hadn't ever occurred to her, she was too innocent for her own good.

"I don't know." She confessed, everything about Loke just defined him as a player who had made some internal challenge in which he would eventually bed Lucy.

Outside, Loke was struggling to light up a cigarette, his stupid lighter must have been out of fluid. He didn't look up as people entered and left, what did he care for the locals here, they were set in their ways, he knew they wouldn't accept an outsider like him into their little _clique_.

"Need a light?" A voice asked, causing him to look over at the stranger, and Loke felt himself groan as the stranger had a lit cigarette. He grunted as he moved close and positioned his hands over the cigarette. The man didn't say anything, which Loke appreciated, he simply lit the stick and continued on puffing out his own.

Loke didn't thank the man properly, he nodded and turned away, fully intent on leaving this pub behind him, yet part of him wanted to keep returning for Lucy, he had enjoyed talking to someone like a normal person and not someone who looked at him like he was just _something_ for them to fawn over.

"Lucy doesn't like smokers." The man beside him said and Loke glanced over, he was a tad startled when he noticed the man had no shirt on; just shorts and a pendant. And Loke decided the pendant he wore definitely wasn't covering much to even be considered part of his apparel.

"I usually don't smoke." He confessed, the sensation was just nice. When the smoke he exhaled danced in front of him, it was as though he was exhaling his stress as well. The feeling of smoking was helping numb the sharp burning pain on his cheek, he knew he had deserved it though.

"She tells me off about it all the time." The man was definitely going through his own cigarette fasting than Loke was; a regular at it, he decided. Loke smiled, it made perfect sense to him that Lucy would hate smoke, it seemed to fit well against her doe persona he had built for her. He was still amused that she had even asked him to help her write flirting for her romance book, it was such an innocent and sweet request; he couldn't refuse.

"Is that why she is dating the other guy and not you?" He wouldn't be Loke if he didn't poke some buttons, but to his surprise the man laughed. He put an end to his smoke and crushed it under the heel of his boot.

"Natsu's a dick. It won't last." He shrugged, it wasn't Gray's normal business to deal in other people's affairs, but Lucy was the kind of person who helped other people, him included. He honestly didn't want to see her unhappy, and all personal vendettas against Natsu aside, he just didn't see the pair of them working, he didn't want either hurt in the long run.

"So, you are supporting me and her?" He joked, the man chuffed at that and shook his head.

"Lucy's not an idiot, she doesn't go for playboys. If she's hanging around you, it means she sees something likeable and good about you." That's exactly what Loke was afraid of, that this one woman could break down the walls he had built so long ago. There wasn't many that knew Loke's secrets, but he found that conversation had naturally flown with Lucy, there was some alluring charm the siren had about her.


	7. Chapter 7

It was odd that she dreamt of him. What was not odd was how he made her blush. She hid the secret that she was flustered by him and blamed the flustering on the fact she just wasn't used to actions like this. Lucy had never experienced the rush of heartbeat so suddenly, she didn't like how it made her feel, like she had no control.

The morning came quickly for her, she let herself lounge in her bed for a few more minutes than her alarm had sounded; a simple luxury. The comfort of the warm duvet was too welcoming. She didn't have specific plans, she told herself. Hypothetically, she could stay here all day.

Something nipped at her to rise from the warmth, to leave her bed and make her way out from the bed. She smiled as she saw Plue in a deep sleep on the couch, it was littered with small tufts of ruffled white fur. Lucy moved and sat down beside him, stirring him from his own sleep as he rushed to his owner and lapped at her cheeks.

"Good dreams, Plue?" She laughed as she enjoyed the simple bliss of being with her pet. "We should go for a walk before it starts to rain." She commented, the small dog happily jumping down, recognising the word 'walk'. He didn't whine as she knelt down to attach the leash. They walked beside the river that led her to Fairy Tail.

"Eh, Miss, be careful!" The voices from the nearby boatmen called out, like always she paid them no heed, simply waved to show that she was okay. She liked to watch as Plue scurried ahead of her, he would sniff at a rock and give her a little 'Boof' at her. Lucy liked that her dog found something special in a pebble that everyone else would ignore as they passed.

She was at Fairy Tail just after noon, it was silent but still had a small handful of customers. Mirajane waved to her and she led Plue in so that he could meet with the bartender.

"How are you, Mirajane?" Lucy asked, sitting down at a barstool as Mirajane came around to meet with the animal, he enjoyed the attention he received from the regulars.

"I'm well Lucy, I'm glad you and Plue were able to visit, it was getting a bit boring." She confessed and looked away from the dog to her friend. "I didn't think you'd be drinking this early." Lucy blushed as she tried to defend herself.

"Ah! Just a water for me, I was thinking I could get Plue out for a walk and work on some writing before Levy and Erza popped over." She rubbed the back of her head, hoping Mirajane wouldn't think of her as the next Cana.

"I'll go grab that for you now."

Lucy had promised to Mira that she could watch Plue, she was more than pleased to babysit her little visitor whilst the bar was lacking customers. It was the perfect opportunity for Lucy to write about the dream, yet she found her hand trembling slightly as she opened her laptop. She scanned her eyes quickly over the already written paragraphs and found them still lacking the raw emotion she wanted to push in her writing.

She tapped at the keys fast. A rhythm was made as her nimble fingers moved and danced from one side of the keyboard to the other, making words that spoke to her.

"Where did you come from?" She hissed at the intruder, she recognised his face, it was hard to forget such a handsome composition. He didn't ask, he just moved and kissed her, taking away her next words of anger. Anna was stuck against his frame, but she found she wasn't pushing him away, he was fierce, and she was attracted to his danger.

"The stars were mocking me for leaving you be, who am I to cross the stars?" His voice was sultry and caused a spark to trickle down her spine to her knees, she didn't want to admit she was weak for him. The words were frozen on her tongue, yet his fire was melting her.

"Lucy!" The blonde looked up and shut her laptop down as she placed it in its bag and grinned as her friend came over to her. The blue hair of Levy made her stick out like a sore thumb, but Lucy adored her cute charm.

"Where's Erza?" She asked, the absence of her very noticeable, especially as the pair of them lived very closely to one another, they frequently would walk to the pub together.

"Erza got in contact with an old friend, Simon or something, she said she'd message us when she'd be free to hang out again." Levy was smiling as she said this, Lucy couldn't help but think that she was also happy for their friend to be re-connecting with her past. Erza was a mystery to most, she held herself up and rarely let anyone in.

"That's okay, we can go out for some ice-cream, just us!" Lucy said enthusiastically, as she went to collect Plue. Mira protested slightly, hugging the small dog in her arms, but Lucy explained he still needed to go to the bathroom, Mira reluctantly gave him back as she didn't want to have to clean up in Fairy Tail.

They were lucky Spring was on them, the cold nights were easing up with each passing day and Lucy was enjoying the sunlight again. As they exited, Lucy heard a cough and turned her head to find Gray leaning against the wall with a smoke between his lips. She glared at him and watched as he rolled his eyes, bringing it out from his mouth.

"You caught me." He said sarcastically as Lucy held out her hand. Gray was no pushover, he was a strong and proud man who was more than capable of standing up for himself. That being said, he handed over the packet of cigarettes. He cursed to himself silently on how there were still ten left. Lucy didn't care.

"I thought you quit!" She yelled at him, Levy began shifting her feet, uncomfortable in this situation.

"I did, things are just," he paused, and Lucy waited, expecting him to finish "a little stressful." His confession caused Lucy to frown, she looked back to Levy who grabbed the dog's leash from her and told her she'd meet her at the Ice Cream parlour. Lucy turned back to him and folded her arms across his chest.

"What happened?"

"Juvia's a bit much, she's very clingy. I don't know what to do." Lucy was saddened her friend was struggling in a relationship, she honestly thought he was happy. "I just don't want to lead her on, but I don't know how I feel." Lucy reached up and touched his arm, a small sign of her comforting him.

"Feelings are confusing." She admitted as he scoffed at that, nodding like it was the understatement of the century. "But, I think it's worth all the messy feelings when you find that person who makes you feel warm." Gray wasn't looking at her, she wanted to push him to talk more to her, but she didn't know how to word it.

"I just think it's rich coming from you." Lucy snatched her arm back and looked at him at shock, she wasn't sure what he was implying, but she knew it was about her failing relationship.

"What?"

"Why are you with Natsu, Lucy?" She was angry, Natsu was her best friend, they supported each other, she was frustrated that people kept on telling her how she was supposed to feel.

"We get on so well!" Gray threw his arms in the air and placed his cold hands on her shoulders, she resisted shivering, he was always cold.

"Exactly! Natsu's a nice guy, and you're great friends, but you're too much alike. He doesn't challenge you to be a better person." She moved a small step backwards, glaring at him. Lucy didn't want to challenge Gray on what exactly he knew about being with someone, she knew to keep her mouth shut at insulting him.

"Why would he have to?" She asked.

"Because when you don't feel you're being a better you, it means you're settling." He was quiet, as though he had answered his own question. He looked ready to apologise, but he kept his lips tight together, he knew he had to be honest with her. Lucy sighed, bringing her hand to her chest, holding it her in a fist.

"I'm confused, I admit. We can talk later, I have to meet Levy." She said quietly, giving a small wave as she walked away from him. She looked at the cigarette packet she had taken from him, she didn't understand the meaning of the brand or the colour it was, all she knew was it belonged in the bin. She heard a small rustle as she threw it in a passing trashcan.

Levy asked about Gray and Lucy found herself talking about him and Juvia, she used them as silhouettes for herself and Natsu, complicating Gray's problem into her own.

"So Gray's still confused on how he feels?" Lucy nodded, a cheap, plastic spoon stuck in Vanilla ice cream, she had lost her appetite. "I think the best he can do is be honest." Levy shrugged, Lucy wished such a simple answer could be easy to act out. She didn't let her emotions stop her from enjoying time with her friend as she made herself enjoy the soft and sweet flavour of the treat.

They made their way back to Fairy Tail after a quick walk around a park, Lucy looked around as they passed it, there wasn't any spiked hair that caught her attention. She allowed Plue a moment off the leash as he ran around in the grass, a slight tinge of green dusted on his white furry paws. Lucy and Levy laughed as they finished their ice cream and Plue was put back on the chain, Mira would be happy to see him again.

As the pair entered, Lucy noted that Gray was absent from the premises, she briefly wondered where he was, whether he was off buying more smokes or talking to Juvia. Mirajane still looked happy as ever, especially to see her dog again, but she called Lucy over for another reason. Apparently there was a woman here to see her, she pointed over to a booth where a timid woman was using her hands to shield her face from the stares she was receiving. Lucy let Mira play with Plue as Levy hugged her and took off, leaving her to meet with the strange girl by herself.

"Hey, Mira says you were asking about me?" She looked at the girl and noted just how cute she really was, everything about her was the epitome of innocence. Lucy motioned to the booth and she nodded frantically as Lucy slid in. "My name is Lucy." She smiled, introducing herself as she noticed the sheepish behaviour of the woman was slightly stopping.

"I'm Aries." Lucy stopped herself from asking her to repeat that, her soft voice was so low, she almost missed the words that left her lips. Aries' hair was a pastel pink, curled short as her locks barely reached her shoulders, Lucy had never seen such clearer skin before, she was slightly jealous at how beautiful she was.

"What can I help you with?" Lucy asked, beyond intrigued as to what this woman could want with her.

"I'm a friend of Loke's." She admitted, and Lucy gasped slightly, her gut twisted as a nasty thought toyed with her as if Aries was really just a friend. She gulped down the accusation and told herself it didn't matter, yet if Loke was with Aries, how could she possibly tell her that he tried to kiss her? She looked at her, slightly sad, though she was unsure why.

"Is Loke okay?" She asked, Lucy looked over and watched as Aries' face grew redder and covered her face once more.

"I'm sorry for making you think something was wrong." Lucy smiled at the purity of Aries, she felt the rude pull of emotions leave her. "Loke told me all about this place and you- I hope that was okay!" Aries was worried about her reaction and Lucy laughed and nodded.

"I didn't think I was worth talking about, honestly." Aries' eyes widened as she slightly let her guard down, slightly more confident in her words.

"I've never seen Loke talk about someone like he does you." She looked away, Lucy frowned and stayed silent. "It's nice…" She trailed off. Lucy worried that it was Aries who held the resentment for her.

"I'm dating someone, Loke is helping me, there's nothing going on." She reached out and grabbed Aries' hand, holing it and rubbing at her soft skin with her thumb as it soothed circle motions. For the first time she watched as Aries' smiled and let out a very small giggle.

"Loke and I love each other as best friends, I promise we don't see each other like that." Lucy let her hand stay holding Aries for a moment more before pulling back and letting it rest at her side. "I see why he likes you, you're very nice."

"I'm not special, I'm just a pretty girl who didn't fall for his charm." She said, adding a wink as Aries smiled at her fondly.

"I know you're with someone, but the reason Loke can sometimes be…" She trailed off, looking for the right word.

"An ass?" filled in Lucy, though Aries blushed, nodding, but not allowing herself to say the word herself.

"He has walls. There was once an awful woman who hurt him, I've never seen him smile like he has been lately in such a long time." Lucy's stomach dropped, she knew all about having walls and having a troubled past. "I would like it if both of you could stay friends at least." She looked down at her lap and Lucy thought about it, Aries only request was to ask to keep her friend smiling. It was nice that Loke had a friend like her, yet she found herself thinking she would do the same thing for Natsu, do anything to make him happy.

"I will be his friend. I'll call him soon." Aries was so gracious she bowed at Lucy for ten minutes before Lucy had to hug her to stop. Lucy smiled, she loved how Aries had done that for him, all she was asking for was that Lucy not give up on Loke, she found it such a simple request that she found herself complying.

Lucy held Plue's leash gripped in her hand, one more small walk for the day, then the pair could rest easy on the sofa and watch TV for the rest of the day. That was the plan at least. When she opened her door she found a pink-haired menace already stuffing his face. "Natsu!" She yelped, letting Plue run straight towards him. He didn't look ashamed in the slightest to have been caught in her apartment, it was the norm for them.

"Welcome home, Darling." She grimaced at the nickname and shut the door behind her as she went to collapse on the sofa. Natsu stayed at her table, though she did catch him feeding plus small pieces of chicken as well.

"Do you think this is a good idea, Natsu?" She asked, looking down at the floor, though by the silence she knew he had heard, he had stopped eating at the food and was just staring at her.

"What is?" He asked, though they both knew what Lucy was talking about.

"Us. Don't you think it's weird we knew each other for so long but never dated? It only happened when prompted." She dared look up and found he was in thought as well. He left the dinner table, moving towards her as he sat next to her, placing her legs over his lap.

"I thought about that too." He acknowledged, she smiled encouragingly at him. "I just don't see the problem with two friends trying though." She sat up on her shoulders. "Why don't we have one more date, and see what happens?" He wasn't scared, but he felt the same as her, that's what mattered, they were figuring this out together.

"Do you ever forget this isn't real?" She asked, the brutal honestly caused him to sigh.

"Yeah, I guess along the way of knowing you I just presumed one day we would get together." Lucy frowned, the trope of two people just getting together because it seemed apparent didn't sit well with her. As she found herself looking at Natsu, he pulled her legs back and sat up on them.

"Why don't we make this next date a real one?" Natsu smiled at her, with Natsu's smiles they radiated joy to the world, she always enjoyed seeing his smile. "We'll see if we want to continue or end it." He agreed and nodded along with her, though his only request that was that he decided what they would do.

"What are we going to do now?" He asked, and Lucy threw a couch pillow at him.

"I'm going to my room to nap, me and Plue did a lot of walking with Levy." She got up from the couch to move back to her bedroom. "Don't break anything!" She called out as she left Natsu in the living room, she heard him laughing as the TV was switched on and she felt herself sink into the bed's duvets once again, it was like she never left.


End file.
